


you're okay, mark lee

by hyuckios



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: M/M, mark needs some cuddles, semi sad but happy mark, short and sweet, showering and tummy rubs, very soft markhyuck
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-20
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2020-03-08 10:22:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,882
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18892690
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hyuckios/pseuds/hyuckios
Summary: after a long performance in mark's hometown,donghyuck gives mark lee the comfort and tummy rubs he deserves.





	you're okay, mark lee

**Author's Note:**

> not edited.  
> aka please excuse the errors <3

The blood soars through Mark’s veins like he’s never felt it before. He feels warmth low in his stomach, making him feel like he’s home. And for as much as it’s worth… he is home. Canada was always a dream away, but Mark can easily say that he’s back, even for a short time. It’s refreshing. There’s tears threatening to slip down his cheeks, but Mark holds them back. He only wants to spread happiness within the venue. 

His eyes tilt over toward his best friends, who soon pull him in for a hug, arms swirling around him with admiration. He can feel Donghyuck’s hand on his stomach, patting and rubbing with care. 

They end the show with smiles, but Mark nearly crashes as soon as he walks backstage. He rests his hands on top of his head and spins himself around, his lip quivering and eyes already glossing over. It’s Doyoung who sees him first, carefully wrapping his arm around Mark’s body, watching the younger fall vulnerable within his embrace. It’s sweet, more than ever. Mark knew he’d break down, but he figured it would happen once he was back at their hotel, at the least. 

“C’mon, let’s get you home.” Doyoung’s voice hums in Mark’s ear, loud, since the echoing is still making him lag in understanding.

Mark knows that Doyoung means their hotel, but he can’t help but say, “I am home.”

It’s one of those nights where Mark would rather spend his evening alone, and for once, he’s able to get what he pleads for. Although it took a lot of convincing, Mark is thankful for the quiet atmosphere of his hotel room.

He’s still covered in sweat, his hair stuck to his forehead. His feet ache, along with every other part of his body, and he can’t help but want to just… fall asleep right then and there. And he almost does, until he hears a gentle knock on his door. 

There’s a moment where he panics, eyes darting toward the clock that reads; 1:02am. Fear crawls over his skin as he checks his phone, not seeing any notifications from any of his members. They always text before showing up. He almost calls someone, until he hears the knock, this time in a recognized pattern. The pattern that Donghyuck and him had come up with. 

His feet carry him toward the door, trying to open it quickly. He fails the first time, forgetting that he had the latch on the door locked. He shuts the door, undoes the latch, and soon is dragging Donghyuck in by his arm, instantly locking it right behind him.

“Donghyuck!” Mark whispers harshly, not realizing that Donghyuck looks just as scared, himself. 

Mark sighs and loosens his grip on the boy’s arm, noticing how smooth his arm feels as his fingers trail down. Donghyuck raises an eyebrow as his eyes scan over Mark’s outfit, wondering why on earth he hasn’t cleaned himself up. 

Mark stands there defeated, knowing exactly what was going through Donghyuck’s head. 

There’s not too many lights on in the hotel room, as Mark has dimmed the lamp to its lowest setting. The low light makes Donghyuck look darker, and Mark takes a moment to admire how his hair is curly from the shower he must have just climbed out of. He smells like hotel soap too, and it’s a little comforting for Mark.

Mark’s eyes read a lot of different things, and he’s lucky that he has a best friend like Donghyuck.

“Let me take care of you?” Donghyuck meets Mark’s eyes and touches him at his elbows, sliding his hands forward until Mark’s hands are fitting in the comfort of Donghyuck’s. 

The younger pulls Mark toward the edge of the bed, gently pushing him until he slouches his shoulders while he sits on the end. Donghyuck drops to his knees and fingers with the laces of Mark’s shoes, untying them in the bitter silence of the hotel room. Once he unties them, he picks both of his shoes off the floor and tosses them toward the door. Mark giggles at the way they land laces up. Donghyuck flicks his knee. 

Mark sighs as Donghyuck presses his fingers onto his knees, lifting himself up. All it takes, is two fingers under Mark’s chin to get him to smile. 

He drags his socked feet over toward the bathroom, and Mark almost calls him out for leaving his hotel room without shoes, but he decides against it. 

“How hot do you want the water?” Donghyuck’s voice raises to reach Mark from across the room, but the hum right behind him scares him half to death. 

“Whatever you think.” Mark shrugs. 

The position they’re in makes a perfect position for Mark to lean his chin on Donghyuck’s shoulder, and he does so, both of them watching themselves in the mirror. The water heats up quickly, because suddenly their reflections are fogging up and disappearing. 

Mark briefly wishes that his thoughts would disappear just as fast.  
Donghyuck, this time, pushes Mark to sit on top of the toilet. Mark’s hands however, hold onto Donghyuck, making the boy practically fall onto his lap. 

They both giggle. 

“Alrighty, arms up!” Donghyuck’s voice slips into Mark’s ears like honey. 

God, he sounds so unbelievably sweet up close. Mark wants to melt with the sugar of Donghyuck’s voice. 

Mark obeys his words, and lazily lifts his arms up, letting Donghyuck take control. Donghyuck does it slowly, too, wanting to be as careful as possible with the already fragile boy.

The neckline is tight on Mark’s neck, so it gets stuck at the top of his head, both of them becoming tangled in the shirt. Mark groans while Donghyuck finds the whole situation humorous, his eyes already beginning to close with how hard he’s laughing. And of course, Donghyuck’s laughter is the most contagious thing to ever exist, so Mark’s cracks up even more. 

His breath gets caught in his throat when Donghyuck throws the shirt behind Mark, because the smile breathing across Donghyuck’s face is prepossessing and Mark never wants to stop looking at it. 

“Do you need help taking off your pants, or can you handle that?”

Mark, with hidden ears from the shirt half on his head, rolls his eyes. He tugs on the back of his shirt and his ears pop into place again. Donghyuck raises an eyebrow as he awaits a response from the boy. 

“I can handle it.” He shrugs and pokes his bottom lip out, telling Donghyuck to turn around. 

Donghyuck turns around and peeks in the mirror, purposely catching Mark’s eyes. The older groans and smacks Donghyuck on his back, coaxing another soft giggle from him. This time, Donghyuck covers his eyes and waits until Mark is in the shower before he removes his hands from his eyes. 

Donghyuck sits on the toilet seat and rubs his sleepy eyes. The sound of the water sounds peaceful, almost peaceful enough to slip him into the slumber his body is begging for. 

He feels droplets on the back of his neck soon, jolting him into an upright position. His eyes instantly find Mark, who has his head sticking out from the shower curtain, his bangs now glued to his forehead. 

“Mark!” Donghyuck groans as he snags the nearest washrag, drying his neck, “Don’t!”

Mark stares at him with the familiar glossy eyes, and Donghyuck can already sense that Mark wants him to get out of the bathroom already. But, that’s quite far from what Mark is actually looking for. 

“Come in with me?” Mark’s voice is low, and it makes some feeling swirl low in Donghyuck’s abdomen. He swallows hard. 

It’s not like Donghyuck hasn’t ever been in the shower with Mark, he just really wasn't expecting him to ask such a thing at one in the morning. 

Donghyuck stares at him for a minute, making sure that he wasn’t just trying to pull his leg. 

“I already showered though.” Donghyuck shrugs, admiring the way Mark’s face pulls further into a pout. 

“Okay, then we won’t get your hair wet.” Mark comes up with a solution, and patiently waits for Donghyuck to nod his head, already slipping his fingers into the waistband of his sweats. 

Mark disappears behind the curtain again and Donghyuck’s body fills with nerves as he hears a chuckle from Mark, putting his heart into a faster beating pattern. It’s sweet, the whole scene is sweet, and Mark just wants to feel close to Donghyuck in that moment. 

The water is definitely a lot hotter than Donghyuck intended for it to be, even based off of the way it bounces from Mark’s skin to his own. It’s not a painful heat, but the temperature is eye opening. 

Mark turns around and reaches for the bottles, handing them to Donghyuck with a grin as he pulls his bottom lip between his teeth. 

“Would you mind?” Mark whispers as though he’s afraid to ask, but Donghyuck is already nodding quickly. 

“I told you… I want to take care of you, tonight.”

Mark’s mind floats to a new place for a second, a place consisting of a blaring and beautiful sun, with a valley of crimson roses and sunflowers that are almost the size of his face. His eyes roll to the back of his head when Donghyuck’s fingers scratch up the back of his neck, lathering the soap in his blonde hair. The boy uses two hands, making the sensation a lot more gratifying. Goosebumps raise on his skin and Donghyuck notices, teasing him by blowing on the back of his neck.

“Donghyuck!” Mark’s voice is raspy, still off in his land full of bliss. 

Even though the water beats down on Mark’s chest, he feels frozen from Donghyuck blowing on the back of his neck. Donghyuck just twists his hands back in Mark’s hair, urging him to turn around. Once he does, Mark cracks open one eye to see the beautiful boy in front of him. Donghyuck hisses and scolds him, telling him to keep his eyes closed. 

Mark’s knees go weak for a moment as Donghyuck helps rinse his hair, and he receives another scold, being told to be careful. 

Mark misses the feeling the second Donghyuck pulls his hands away, clicking his tongue to inform Mark that he’s finished. He even lets out a little whine and a huff, and Donghyuck glares his eyes at him, scrunching his nose up. 

“I’ll scratch your head for you some more later. Wash your body so we can go lay down.” Donghyuck informs Mark, who cracks half of his mouth up.

He breaks into a little smile from idea of future head scratches, but mainly because Donghyuck used the word “we” and “lay” in the same sentence. 

Mark reaches for the blue loofah that he bought at the convenience store in the middle of New York City a few weeks back, pouring some of his own tea tree body wash on it, and rubbing it between his hands. 

Donghyuck watches him in amusement, admiring the way Mark’s back muscles contract under the water. He knows those muscles are just as tired as his own, if not more. 

“Mark, I’m so proud of you.” Donghyuck whispers suddenly, observing the way Mark holds his position. His insides calm from the phrase, and he’s thankful that Donghyuck says such a thing. 

He hears it all the time, from fans, from his family, but hearing it from his own members always feels so touching. 

“You work so hard, and I hope you’re happy to be back home, even if it’s just for a short time. You deserve this.” Donghyuck speaks with such sincerity in each of his words, and Mark hears each one like a pump of air into his heart, making it a little bit bigger as Donghyuck continues to speak. 

He turns around to meet Donghyuck’s gaze. Neither of them know what each other’s next action is, but Mark takes it upon himself to change the atmosphere. He lifts the loofah over Donghyuck’s head, covered in both soap and water, and he squeezes it. 

Donghyuck flattens his mouth into a line and clenches his eyes shut, as though he’s accepting the action. Mark snickers and Donghyuck lets him continue to squeeze the soap over his head. When he opens his eyes again, he sees Mark’s familiar ones, just a little glossier than usual. 

Mark reaches his hands to the back of Donghyuck’s neck, using his thumbs to sweep over Donghyuck’s eyes, getting rid of the soap for him. Donghyuck wants to laugh, but he knits his eyebrows together, desperate to lean forward and bring their lips together in a kiss. His stomach swirls with confidence, watching it disappear in a split second. 

Instead, he rinses his hair for the second time that night, and slips his t-shirt and sweatpants back on, making his way to the side of the bed that Mark wasn’t occupying. He sits on the edge, gripping the sheets aggressively, wondering if he’ll have the confidence to speak up about his feelings tonight. 

Mark, already curled under the covers, tilts to the side and fists the back of Donghyuck’s shirt, yanking him backward until Donghyuck’s back meets the mattress. It startles him, but encourages him to scoot a little closer to Mark. 

The television in front of them plays some black and white film, acting as white noise for their own tv show happening between them. They don’t speak much, but their gestures speak loud enough. 

They’ve turned off all the lights, too, so facial expressions are hard to read. But Mark absolutely swoons for the way the television lights up the side of Donghyuck’s face, reflecting on his sleepy eyes. They’re both aware that it’s two fifteen in the morning, and sleep is knocking at their door, but still they both lay on their sides, facing each other, and speaking to each other with only their eyes and synced breathing. 

It’s quiet, and Donghyuck thinks he could fall asleep right there, but Mark’s tiny voice speaks up a moment later. 

“Hold me?” Mark asks, the raspiness in his voice acting like pure liquor in Donghyuck’s body.

Without hesitation, Donghyuck lifts his arm and watches Mark crawls forward. As soon as he’s close enough to Donghyuck, the younger pulls him tight, hugging him like he never has before. Mark grips on the edges of his shirt and softly cries into Donghyuck’s shoulder. 

“You’re okay, Mark Lee.” Donghyuck tells him, his fingers already carding back in Mark’s damp hair. He scratches gently, and Mark sighs at the familiar touch. 

“I love what we do, Hyuck, I really do… and being home makes me realize how far I’ve come… and I haven’t taken the time to realize how proud I am of myself. We’ve come so far.” Mark shrugs as he lays on his back next to Donghyuck, their sides pressed up against each other in a smooth line, ankles knocking together every few seconds. 

“That’s cause you were meant for this life, Mark.” Donghyuck slides his hand across Mark’s body until it lays across his torso, on the lowest part of his stomach. He nudges his nose against Mark’s shoulder, gently using his hand to lift Mark’s shirt to lay his hand flat on his stomach. 

Mark sucks in a breath at the temperature of Donghyuck’s cold hand against his warm abdomen. And with a little encouragement from Mark, Donghyuck rubs his hand from one of Mark’s side, back to the other, lifting his fingers up until his fingernails graze against his skin. 

It’s such a clear night out, and the moonlight shines with so much desire, like it’s shining just for Mark.

Donghyuck moves his hand slower and a lot gentler, making Mark’s body coat in comfort, and love. He doesn’t know how Donghyuck can speak through his hand, but he feels everything that Donghyuck means. He lays his hand over Donghyuck’s and encourages him to continue the rubbing. 

He feels comfortable in Donghyuck’s embrace, he feels desperate for more, and forever. 

Donghyuck lifts his head slightly to press his lips to Mark’s shoulder. 

Their hearts pound as one, both of them ticking clocks to break the ice and open themselves even further for each other. 

This is Donghyuck, Mark’s best friend. Mark’s best friend that he really has learned to love and admire. Anything and everything does.. Mark is there to sigh, giggle and get annoyed at.

Mark doesn’t really know who he’d be without Donghyuck by his side. 

The television changes to commercials, full of color, and suddenly Donghyuck’s face is a lot brighter. A lot more inviting, and his hand is moving slower and slower, and Mark can’t help himself. 

“Fuck, Donghyuck…” 

It’s simple. 

Mark and Donghyuck have been the closest of friends since the beginning of time. But it’s not close enough for either of them. 

Donghyuck is just as eager as Mark, and hearing those words brings a welcoming heat to his body, melting at the way Mark’s lips slot between his own, the taste of mint spreading between them like a wildfire. 

_Mark knows he’s home in Canada, but he’s beginning to think that home is wherever the hell Lee Donghyuck is._


End file.
